Ubuntu

How do I pretend to be a mac in order to get internet

Asked by Max Randor

I need to persuade a clever Linux server that my Ubuntu Feisty laptop pc is a mac.
First I will explain why.
I spend most of my time at a place where they have a very stupid windows LAN.
On this LAN there is only one computer connected to the internet, this computer is a propitiatory box (well almost) but it is based on Linux. This computer as well as doing good things like acting as a firewall and being a nice secure Linux server helping to protect the stupid windows network from attack also does annoying things like censor web pages (for instance any url containing the word game and some which just contain the word blog). It does one thing that is even more stupid than that though, it uses a clever linux package like pof or nmap to determine what OS computers that try to access the internet through it are running (among other things). It only allows computers running Windows (with some additional propitiatory software and windows management programs which makes it very very hard to pretend to be a windows computer) or a Mac computer, they don't have that many macs or know much about them so it is much easier to network a mac and here lies the flaw in their stupidity that should allow the cleverness of Ubuntu Linux to connect me to the internet.
I need to be able to make my computer fool the cleverest Linux OS detection programs into thinking that my computer is a mac of course using the cleverest Linux programs to do that to. :-)
This issue has become much more important to me just recently as Windows XP (which I dual boot (for internet of course)) is refusing to update itself and has critical security flaws which scares me slightly.
I know it is possible to get Linux to pretend to be anything at all, and though I have done lots of searching I have not found a way specifically for making Linux into a mac, most example files show how to be a windows server or a cisco router but not mac.
The problem is not the User Agent I have tried changing that in firefox, and I will need to change this as well.
I have installed honeyd which says it can make virtual computers that appear to run anything you want them to (but again no mac example file) and it is not quite what I am looking for as I know there is a simpler way – I just don't have the right example file.
Unfortunately I have exams coming up and so don't have time to find out how to write such a configuration file and it would take a long time as I am quite new to Linux only had it since Christmas.

If I can do this then I will be able to safely access the internet and it will be much more likely that other people on the network will ask me to help them dual boot Ubuntu, I expect very few people on this LAN have ever heard of Linux and many of them are having great fun with viruses and spyware on Windows and would appreciate a sane operating system.

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Max Randor
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Someone (s4910321931-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#1

The best way in this situation is to consult the admin who runs this `clever' box and ask him for help. Without the details how the OS detection is done noone would be able to help here.

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Alan Pope 🍺🐧🐱 🦄 (popey) said : 		#2

Would it not be easier to install a simple proxy on one of the windows boxes on the LAN, and proxy your traffic through it?

That way p0f would see all traffic coming from a valid Windows box and not your naughty Linux box.

Also worth noting that most companies have strict policies about using the internet, and circumventing those controls is often a dismissable offence.. So be careful whatever you do.

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Max Randor (max-randor) said : 		#3

hmm I might be able to persuade someone to proxy my traffic... that is a good idea.
I have slightly annoyed the admin :-) and I was told that though I could dual boot Linux on my laptop, it would not be allowed the internet.

I am however still looking for I nice simple way of fooling p0f or nmap into thinking I am running whatever OS I want to pretend to be running :-) just because it would be fun :-) and finding a computer that is always on and so would make a good proxy might be difficult.

The only thing the admin can do is bar me from the network :-) and I am not sure that that would prevent windows from getting internet, just prevent me using the printers and the shared folders :-).

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Adam Smith (adamtropics) said : 		#4

Or, dare I say it, keep windows running on your machine, to get connection, and use a virtual Ubuntu to actually use that connection and do, whatever it is that you do.....persuading someone else to proxy your traffic having already had the 'decision' from admin, could have unfortunate repercussions for them too, so wouldn't recommend that either!

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Someone (s4910321931-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#5

If the Windows is the answer, then the following trick would help.
1. Install vmware or any other virtualizing package.
2. Install Windows into virtual machine.
3. Remove ip address from your physical network interface in Linux.
4. Configure virtual machine to have two interfaces: one bridged to physical network adapter and another connected to virtual network.
5. Configure our IP address in Windows on interface bridged to physical one (or get it via DHCP, it will work even if MAC-to-IP mapping is configured on DHCP server). From this point Windows should have access to the Internet.
6. Configure in Linux virtual adapter which connects to virtual network between Windows and Linux (statically or dhcp client)
7. Setup NAT on windows (via Internet Connection Sharing if it is a Windows XP).
8. Have an Internet access in Linux in the most ugly way possible. =)

I prefer co confine Windows into the slowliness of virtual machine, not Linux, as Adam suggested.

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Alan Pope 🍺🐧🐱 🦄 (popey) said : 		#6

I seriously doubt that would fool p0f Dennis. p0f will see the packets coming from the underlying Linux network driver, not from windows.

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Someone (s4910321931-deactivatedaccount) said : 		#7

I do not known the internals of p0f, so this may be the case, the only way is to try and see. All depends on the level Windows NAT process changes packets. Anyway, User-Agent strings would go in the clear, that should be changed in broweser to pretend we are using Internet Explorer.

So a proxy instead of NAT may be a better solution.

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Best Max Randor (max-randor) said : 		#8

I have come to a better understanding with the admins.
They will happily network ubuntu. :-)
It was all a complicated misunderstanding caused by them having to implement policies that are theoretically impossible.
They are nice people really :-)

Thank You everyone